Romney-leaning Wall Str eyes Obama
Time to introspect. Wall Street firms gambled on Mitt Romney and lost. Now, faced with the prospect of even tougher regulations in President Barack Obama's second term, they have to build better ties with the new financial regulators he will appoint.
Obama lost the support of many bankers in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis and the passage of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law, which sought to shore up the financial system but also cost banks billions of dollars in annual profit.
The Democratic president has openly stated his distaste for fat cat bankers who don't get it, and bankers fears more losses ahead if they cannot influence how the Dodd-Frank rules are implemented.
He will continue to increase regulation, demonize and vilify businesses, and spend a lot of money, and tax people, and so forth, said Dick Kovacevich, a former Wells Fargo CEO and supporter of Republican challenger Romney.
Wall Street firms are also worried about Elizabeth Warren, whose victory in the Massachusetts Senate race may galvanize her to push for more regulations on bank lending to protect consumers. Warren was instrumental in creating the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which critics say could weigh down the economy with new regulations.
I think the Obama win, along with Elizabeth Warren, will lead to more accountability and tighter regulation on Wall Street, said Chris Tobe, who advises pension plans as a principal at Stable Value Consultants and is a trustee of the Kentucky state pension fund. Especially after a big shift to Romney from
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